Summer Snow
by Lost-In-The-Search-For-Love
Summary: Flora has always been the shy one until she meets Helia. But what about him? Was he always so quiet? Did he hate fighting since birth? This is Helia's side of the romance.
1. Sunrise

**A/N: Hello, everyone. This is the story of Flora and Helia's romance from Helia's point of view. It will be mostly canon, with a little bit of extra stuff added in here and there. I also happen to be slow at updating, but I will finish this story. Happy Reading!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Winx Club or any of its related productions.**

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The brush moved swiftly over the paper. A myriad of thoughts, memories erupted in fragments in his mind.

"_You're my best…"_

"_You can't just leave…"_

"_Redfountain will never have another student like you…"_

"_You cannot stray from your path because of one incident, however big or small it may be…"_

_To all of them, Helia had given only one reply._

"_I have received my Calling. I must go."_

He thought of their outraged faces, the disappointment in his father's eyes, but he was firm in his resolve. Art School. He had never met anyone who approved of his transfer from Redfountain, especially after they heard that he was the best specialist in the Academy. Except her.

"_The way you have made these strokes is awesome. It really brings out the liveliness of the subject."_

_He had been pleasantly surprised. The jade eyes had looked at his painting of the doves with a fervour that could possibly match his own; here was someone who understood Art. _

"_No one has seen all this on paper before."_

_He had smiled. His first real, genuine smile in about two years. The fairy had blushed then. _

"_And this is Flora," Brandon had continued._

_Flora. The name felt sweet on his tongue, as if he was meant to say it over and over again…_

_Just as he was thinking this, the specialist squad bid him goodbye and went away. He could not understand the little twinge of sadness that struck him when the green-eyed brunette left with them. The doves had flown away. He sighed and closed his book. He would paint again only when the doves, and the fairy, returned._

He thought of the blankets of gloom that had settled over him after his transfer. For a while, his paintings were all in dark shades – blue, navy, and black. His teachers had admired his potential and had asked him to paint them a sunrise. Using red for the first time had been excruciating. The scene he would never forget in all his life – slashes of red over the battlefield – swam forever in front of his eyes. The sunrise had been redder than he had intended it to be. It looked like an angry sun, ready to burn everything in its path. His teachers had loved it though, and he had gone on to use brighter colours. He remembered the first time he had drawn her portrait.

_A pencil in hand, he had spotted her again, walking with the blonde fairy – Stella. She was smiling. He had been inspired then and there, and the pencil had moved of its own accord. It was a simple sketch, but it was a portrait nevertheless. _

_That was when he had heard the blast. Looking upwards, he had seen the huge monster snapping at the specialists. He had seen Codatorta run past, calling to the fairies to come and help. So she was a fighter, he had mused. He had not missed the half-hopeful glance his former teacher had thrown at him, but he had shaken his head. He had pledged not fight anymore, and he was going to stay true to himself. Codatorta had sighed, but another blast had made him hurry. The fairies had gone, Helia noticed. _

_He had calmly continued with his sketching._

_The blasts had continued and after a while, he had begun to wonder why the best squad in the Academy could not handle a single monster. Out of pure curiosity, he had risen from his seat and gone over to look. _

_His first view was of the redhead – Bloom – who was trying to attack the monster head on. Then he had spotted Riven, trying to attack, too. Timmy had been concentrating hard, and Helia had admired his tactics. This monster needed careful strategy, not brute strength, as the fighters were trying to use. He had smiled at their foolishness. Hadn't Codatorta taught them to disable an enemy? He could have helped if he had wanted to, but he hadn't. Until he saw the monster about to eat the brunette._

_Nothing had occurred to Helia then, except saving her one way or the other. His laser string glove was the only thing he had found in his pocket and he had put it on. He was glad his grandfather had told him to keep it with him, for it was the best gear to disable. _

_The strings had shot out and had pulled the monster back. _

_He had seen the fairy open her beautiful eyes and look in his direction. So she had accepted the oncoming of death, he had thought. He wondered at the baffled expression in her eyes; it seemed that she used it often, for it fitted her features very well. _

"_Are you hurt?" he had heard himself asking._

"_N-No," she had stammered and he had felt satisfied enough to let go._

_He had turned and walked away then, ignoring the cries of surprise the specialists had uttered when he had released his hold. He had heard them doubt if his glove was not strong enough to hold the monster for a longer time, but he had brushed it off. The rumours that had surrounded him when he had transferred were enough to last him a lifetime. He felt another twinge, this time a stab of fear, as he wondered if the brunette had heard them. He didn't want her to think he had been thrown out of Redfountain…_

The brush paused as Helia smiled at his naivety. He should have known that Flora wouldn't believe in rumours.

_He had known later, when he had heard her murmuring to her pixie…_

"_Personally, Chatta, I don't think he's like that. Whatever Timmy says, I don't believe he was expelled. Not after what he did to save me. Do you think he did that only for me? No one does things for me."_

_He had felt an inexplicable desire to make her aware of his attentions. He had folded his sketch of her, and had made it fly to her. The way she had looked at it, the way she had blushed had given him unexplainable peace of mind. _

He got up and went into the room. The application Saladin had given him lay on the table. Somehow, his grandfather had known, that Helia would return, that he would never be able to bid Refountain goodbye. He filled out the form and walked briskly down to the Headmaster's study.

"Yes, come in," came an old voice.

"Grandpa," he had said, placing the sealed envelope on the table. "I'm coming back."

Bafore Saladin could utter a word, whether of surprise or compliment, Helia had already left the room. A certain green-eyed fairy had made him break one of the promises he had made to himself.

Inspiration came to him again and he returned to his temporary quarters.

_Walking down a lonely road, the raindrops seem to…_

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**A/N: Thank you for reading, everyone. I'm sorry if the dialogue is a little out of sync, because you see, Winx Club wasn't aired in English in my country and I'm trying to translate as best as I can. I'll be going mostly by canon, though.**

**All reviews welcome.**


	2. Rush

**A/N: Hello, everyone. I'm so sorry for the long wait - I had some really important exams to give. Now that I'm free, I suppose I shall find time to write. Hope the chapter is worth the long wait.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Winx Club or any of its related productions.**

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Helia supposed Sky's squad was the best placement he could have had. They were all good guys, were affable, a quality which Helia generally appreciated – with the exception of Riven and Sky, who were always fighting each other.

As everyone else, they were mystified by him. That didn't bother him, rather it amused him. Was it really so hard to understand an introvert? _He _didn't have any problem understanding Timmy. Nor any of the other guys.

Sky was easy to understand. The guy had a daring mind and a great intuition for warfare. Though he could be a little irascible sometime, Sky had a good heart. And speaking of hearts, the guy was desperately in love with Bloom.

Brandon was a ladies' man. Though the competition with Stella to get the most number of admirers, Brandon's love life was a crystal-clear lake. He loved Stella. The rest of the girls were just inside jokes. In the matter of Heroics, Helia liked his experience with the double-edged sword. The goofy manner was also a great stress-buster in the middle of a battle.

Riven was difficult. Some said he was a chauvinist. Helia did not essentially think so, but his opposition of Layla – a feminist through and through – was indicative. Helia had heard about Riven having his loyalties tested the year before. His complicated relationship with Musa was the root of his socializing with Darcy – Helia was sure of it. Sometimes, Helia sympathized with Musa for not confiding in Riven too much. But then, he was a perfect match for a tomboy like Musa.

Timmy was the easiest of all, and he was the one with whom Helia bonded effortlessly. Helia had a good knowledge of technology, though he preferred not to use it, and was content enough to listen to Timmy's unending tirade about his inventions. Now and then though, he wished Timmy would see the beauty of the life around him, get out of the cyber-world and bond a little with people. He was sure Tecna wished it, too.

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He had preferred not to reveal much about himself to his teammates. Sharing a room with Riven was not easy, and certainly did not correspond to Helia's morals of cleanliness. Riven and Helia were polar opposites – one a hopeless romantic, and the other an emotional black hole. Since Helia's part of the room was always quite organized – except for the poems, which came and went as they pleased – Riven had plenty of space to throw his things about. Subsequently, Helia's possessions were so hidden that nobody could deduce anything about him.

The news of the Codex bothered Helia. He had seen it, the almost-elliptic piece that was housed by Redfountain. He knew the code to the underground chamber – the wisdom that matched the weight of Redfountain. The attempt on the Codex on the inauguration day was unsuccessful, mainly because of the fairies. He admired them for their sense of duty and protection.

So, when the Mayhem Ball caused chaos, he was glad that at least three of them had, though unexpectedly, come to Redfountain. He took them straight to Codatorta, into the control room.

"Codatorta: Bloom, Flora and Tecna are here. I thought they could help."

"Yeah, for sure!" Timmy's head turned at the mention of Tecna, and Helia had to repress a grin.

Codatorta was glad for the reinforcements. "Here's the situation," he quickly explained, "We don't know who set this thing, but we have to keep it away from the school."

The Mayhem Ball apparently was running away. Codatorta, now enraged that someone had tried to breach his school, sent the junior squad fliers _and_ the dragon-riders after it. Oops. Bad decision. The explosion that racked the school's roof confirmed Helia's suspicions.

"Hey, someone's broken into the North Wing!" cried Timmy, and an alert sounded across the room. The fairies all gave exclamations of surprise, but Helia was distressed. The North Wing was close to…

"There's a direct pathway from there to the Veritas Chamber! We can't let them get to the Codex!"

Without waiting for further instruction from Codatorta, Helia turned toward the elevator. He hardly heard Tecna and Timmy calling out to each other to be careful. The aqua eyes met Riven's and some relief flooded through him. As Riven pressed the switch, the elevator doors opened, revealing a confused Sky. Bloom blushed. Riven rudely interrupted, pressing that they had the Codex to save. Sky offered to go with them.

"There's an elevator malfunction. We're stuck in here!" came a transmission from the second floor. Without hesitating, Helia ran after the others towards the staircase. The familiar rush coursed through his veins, the rush of adrenaline that came before an impending battle. He forced himself to focus, and concentrated on the swinging hair of the fairy running in front of him.

This turned out to be a bad idea. The brown hair was laced with the perfume of roses. A distinct scent that reminded him that he was staring at Flora. Refusing to blush, Helia forced his eyes elsewhere.

_Ah! _he thought, _the Witches. I should have known._

He went with Sky and the fairies as Riven and Balthasar took the steps to the first level. Realising a short while later that the Trix were also on first level, a run up there showed Riven slumped against a window and the Witches escaping.

"Brandon, the Witches are headed to the Veritas Chamber. You have to get there!" called Sky over the com-links.

_I'm on it!_

The uppermost level took a little time to reach. Time, in which Brandon had tried to hold Darcy off before collapsing to a cloud of Darkness spell. When they got to the lobby, Icy was (morbidly) delighted to see Bloom.

"Here's my favourite fairy!" she cackled.

"Come on, girls!" called Bloom, "let's go get them!"

Though a Winx transformation was amazing to watch, Helia hardly had the time. Icy and Darcy flew off to Veritas, leaving Stormy to fight. Helia noticed the gleam of a strange wire on Stormy's forearm – which could explain Icy's use of the expression 'your new powers'.

Tecna's attck went futile; it only encouraged Stormy. She threw a curse. Towards Flora.

Hearing Flora's scream as she fell at least ten feet to the ground, Helia experienced the same, unexplainable, blood-boiling anger again. The same feeling that had compelled him to save her from being the Shadow Monster's meal. He threw his laser dtrings at Stormy – which, though looked fragile, had the force of a hundred whips – but she dodged them. Then, leaving Helia fuming, she flew away.

A soft cry from Tecna obliged him to abandon his quest. He shouted out to Sky that Stormy was going to the basement, and rushed to help Tecna. In the silence that followed, he heard Flora say, "Hey! Does Helia go to Redfountain now?"

_What?_ said his mind, when he heard Sky's reply, "Yes. Saladin got him to transfer in."

Not fully true, but half so.

"We should go after them," said Tecna. "I'm fine. They'll need our help."

Helia nodded and both of them ran through the nearest door. Tecna was faster with her wings, she flew down the elevator shaft with the others. Helia hesitated for a moment, then swung himself down on the cables.

He found that his moment of hesitation had taken from him that chance to save Flora from Stormy's curse.

"I'll be fine," he heard her say as he swung into the basement, "I'll catch up with you."

Sure. As if she was in a conditon to. He had the feeling that Flora was a little insecure.

He had the pleasure of seeing he eyes widen when she saw him enter, and then that inexplicably beautiful blush creeping over her cheeks. He abandoned all ideas of going after Stormy. She was more important.

"Are you okay?" he asked her, kneeling down. He thanked his stars for the Healer training that his mother had insisted he take.

"I'm okay," said the brunette, her voice feeble and cracking.

"May I?" he gestured towards her wrist. The blush spread higher, but she nodded.

Touching her bare skin for the first time was…phenomenal. The warmth of her skin, the feeling of it…her hand was not smooth – he had hardly expected it to be – it was roughened by the soil in digging and planting. Helia's fingers searched for her nerve as he pushed back the pink glove. Then he frowned. Surely, this was not the normal rate. This was far too fast. It was erratic. Frowning still, he looked up. Into her eyes.

The meaning of her chaotic heartbeat was clear to him now. Indeed, his own heart was no longer beating softly. In those pools of liquid jade, he found an emotion he could not recognize. Her wrist fell from his grasp. Something stirred in his heart. A new glow settled over him.

An explosion broke his reverie. Smoke drifted into the room. "This isn't bordering well…" he murmured.

"Helia!" He turned sharply to her. "Go call Saladin. This isn't in our hands now. I'll try to help them, but we need the teachers. Go quickly!"

He helped her stand and turned towards the elevator shaft, but stopped when he saw her stumble. He couldn't stop himself from grabbing her forearm. "Flora…be careful." She nodded and he, with a last look into the seamless jade, took hold of the cables. While he swung up, he gave her a last piece of advice.

"Don't walk…fly."

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In the end, they'd lost the Codex. Sky had been revived with the help of Bloom's new-found powers, and was now his girlfriend. Helia couldn't help noticing how hard Sky was trying to mask his happiness. Mask it, yes, because this wasn't the time to be joyful. The other parts of the Codex needed protection.

In the end, however much he tried, Sky was happy.

In the end, however much Helia refused to admit it to himself…he was in love.

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**A/N: Okay, I admit the FloraXHelia bit wasn't aired in the episode. But hey! I'm a hopeless romantic, too! And then, what's a romantic without romance?**

**All reviews welcome.**


	3. Promise

**A/N: First of all, this is a very very short chapter. Seriously people, I'm quite out of inspiration. Something like Writer's Block. Don't worry, I'll get over it. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Winx Club or any of it's related productions.**

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_Dear Helia,_

_How are you, dear? Missing you a lot. We all are. Your father keeps saying that it is good you transferred back to Redfountain, but I know he wishes your holidays would come sooner. Your grandfather told us about the Codex. I know you must have done your best to stop the invasion. But son, what is lost is lost. I believe you should focus on protecting the rest of the pieces. Tell me about your friends, and keep up your painting. _

_Hoping to hear from you soon,_

_Your loving mother._

_P.S. Orion promises to get you a new hover-plate. He smashed your old one while riding it in the second-level hallway. Don't worry, I gave him a good scolding._

Helia put down his mother's letter and sighed. His brother smashed hover-plates by the week. He was going to have to lock all of his in the store-room when he went back home. No amount of chiding seemed to knock sense into Orion. The boy had more injuries from accidents than from battles.

"Hey, Helia! Want to come outside?" called Brandon. "We have a period off right now. There's some problem with the reconstruction of the roof, and so the arena's off limits until next week."

"That means I can't kick Sky's ass till next Saturday," drawled Riven. "Too bad."

"There's plenty of free space in the grounds," retorted Sky. "Let's see who kicks–"

"I'm game if Timmy is," interrupted Helia. "He needs to get out of the computer."

"What will we do outside?" asked Timmy. "I'm writing a rather interesting program, actually. Tecna promised to create a virtual world that's exactly like Zenith, and I'm putting in a few bits. I just need to modify the proton rays that throw in radiation…"

"Let's go to Alfea," said Sky. "I'm dying to see Bloom."

"No chance, dude. The girls have a Potionology class now. We can meet them only for lunch."

"How do you know that, Brandon?"

"Stella sneaked her cell phone into class. She's texting me."

"Just come on, guys. Let's get outta here."

Helia walked out of the door after Riven, grabbing a sketch book on the way. If he was going into the grounds, a sketch of the newly-bloomed white orchids seemed appropriate.

The specialists settled at the foot of the biggest Oak in the grounds. Helia had a full view of his subject and the pencil in his hand automatically started to draw the familiar strokes. Timmy peeked over his shoulder into the pad.

"What's Zenith like?" enquired Helia, mainly to get Timmy's mind off the sketch.

"Lots of technology. High rise buildings everywhere. Zenith has more hover-crafts than any other realm…" Timmy launched into a full-fledged description of Tecna's home planet.

"Ever been there?" put in Brandon.

"No. But I can deduce a lot from Tecna's project. She really misses her home planet."

"Speaking of home planets," said Sky, "How's everything on Solaria, Brandon? How're Stella's parents coming up?"

"As usual," said Brandon, and Helia was surprised to see that he was smirking heavily.

"You mean they still refuse to see each other's faces, right?" sneered Riven.

Brandon gave him a friendly punch, but said, "Yeah. Something like that."

Helia was greatly surprised. "Isn't Stella the _Princess_ of Solaria?"

"Yup."

"Then, you mean – the king and queen of Solaria live separately!"

"Hmm. They divorced just before Stella came to Alfea."

"Oh." Helia thought it prudent not to speak further on the subject as Brandon didn't seem too eager to either.

After that though, once the topic had been brought up, there was much talk about home planets. Helia was most fascinated by Eraklyon. He laughed when he heard the fairies' annoyance on realizing their boyfriends were not, in fact, what they presumed them to be. From what he knew of the Winx, he could just imagine what Stella would have looked like when she came to know that her Prince Sky was not actually Prince Sky, in truth, his name was not even Sky but Brandon, whom she knew to _Bloom's _crush.

Timmy seemed very eager to tell them more about Zenith, so Riven diverted the topic to Flora. Helia, now listening intently, asked where she came from. The answer he received sent chills through his heart.

"Linphea."

"Linphea?" Helia repeated blindly, not believing his ears.

"Yeah, Linphea. She says it's the fifth moon of Marigold, or something like that. Flora is the Princess of Linphea."

Oh! Why did Destiny play such foul games with him? Why couldn't she belong to some other realm? Any other would do; he would even consent if she were from the Omega dimension! The more he tried to distance himself from the shackles of society, the more they seemed to pursue him. Flora couldn't be the Princess of _Linphea_, because if she were, then that meant he was her…

"Hey! You listening?" said Sky, waving a hand in front of Helia's face. "I asked you if you've been to Linphea before. You look like you know something 'bout it."

Helia forced himself out of his thoughts, but his voice was still shaky. "No. I haven't been to Linphea, but…I have been in the vicinity of the planet. I know some things about it. For instance, it's the centre of Nature magic in all the dimensions, and it houses the Black Willow."

Riven and Brandon wolf-whistled, Timmy grinned and Sky clapped Helia on the back. "Good for you, dude. It's good to know about your girlfriend's background." Helia stared at him.

"Flora is _not_ my girlfriend."

"Oh, come on!" teased Riven. "We all know you eye her up."

"Guys. Shut up," said Helia simply. Linphea put a new edge to his attractions towards Flora. If he were to date her, it would go against every moral of his, every principle that he had, every promise he had made would be broken. No. He would _not_ allow her to capture his heart. He _must_ stop himself. "I have to go. Need to reply to a letter."

With that, he pushed the brunette out of his mind, and concentrated solely on reprimanding his brother for taking, and breaking, his things.

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**A/N: I think this was pretty lame, but let me know.**

**All reviews welcome.**


	4. Dreams

**_A/N: For all the people who think there's something off, I know Flora is not the Princess of Linphea, just a normal citizen...but this adds an interesting twist to the story. A little more about Helia in this chappie..._**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Winx Club; wish I did though._  
_**_

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_He was in a grassland, holding his shield and his sword, ready for potential attackers. They did not come. According to tradition, the battle would only begin with the first rays of the sun._

_But where was the sun? Where was he? _

_Before his eyes, the scene began to dissolve._

_The grass was streaked with shockingly crimson blood. There was blood on his armour and on that of every fallen soldier in the field. His blade was tainted with scarlet, and the groans of the wounded echoed in his ears. _

_So much destruction. So much death._

_He had caused the death of some of these people. He was a murderer. His mentors had justified the crime by calling it his infallible courage in the war, but he knew better. This was plain slaughter, and he had done it. His windpipe constricted, choking._

_He could not help sinking to his knees. The clatter of the weapons in his hands falling to the ground was the sound that drowned out all the rest of them._

_

* * *

_

Helia sat up suddenly in bed with a soft cry, clutching the front of his nightshirt, which was bathed in sweat. He felt bile rise in his throat. Pushing it forcibly back, he glanced over at Riven. The specialist was insentient; a dip in his snores the only disturbance in his sleep. Helia rose from his bed and poured himself a glass of water. Tossing it back, he wandered out into the balcony.

He couldn't get that little thing out of his mind. _Flora, Princess of Linphea._ _Linphea…_

Unknowingly, Helia's face fell forward into his hands. How in the world could a broken heart be broken again? How long could it go until it was completely shattered? Why was that girl born where she was? Why was he so bound by the manacles of society? Oh! Why couldn't the world leave him alone!

He shook his head, telling himself that he was losing control. He closed his eyes and let the wind blow across his face; let it ruffle his hair; let it calm his panicked nerves.

_I love Flora…she's the Princess of Linphea…I shouldn't care about that…nothing should come before love…_

The image of Flora's face swam before Helia's eyes; he imagined her standing where he was, the wind blowing her lustrous hair onto her face, her jade eyes shining with joy, her pink lips turned up in a gorgeous smile…

_God, I need to see her! Now!_

It was the first time ever that Helia had acted without thinking. Slipping into his uniform, he ran down to the hangers and jumped on to his levabike. He was halfway over the Enchanted Forest before he had time to rethink his decision. It was too late to turn back. He landed some distance from the school, ditched his bike behind some bushes, and got in through the secret entrance he knew existed at the back of the school. He shinned up a tall tree and looked in the window he supposed was hers.

Ah, there she was! She was sleeping on her side, her face turned towards the window, smiling a little at some dream. Helia threw his laser strings and swung quietly into the balcony. The light tap of his boots did not awaken her. Helia couldn't go in to stare at that lovely face, but he sank down right where he was, automatically pulling out the sketchbook he carried at all times.

Drawing the basic outline, he noticed her blankets had fallen away, exposing a slim but curvaceous body. He smiled at the way her arm hung over the edge of the bed. He noticed every little detail of the object of his interest, fretting over her.

_Doesn't she get cold in that flimsy little nightdress?_

_She's not smiling anymore; is she having a bad dream?_

_Her covers are off…what if she catches a fever?_

* * *

Ultimately, Helia ended up staying there until dawn was just about to break. The realisation that Flora was probably an early riser made him leave in a flurry. It would never do to have her see him there. She couldn't reciprocate his feelings. If she knew who he was, her prudent mind would never let her love him back. Flora was a girl who took her decisions carefully, he knew. No, she couldn't fall in love with him…

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**_A/N: All criticism welcome!_**


	5. Rose

**A/N: This chapter explains Helia's absence during the middle of season 2 when the Cloudtower and Alfea Codex pieces were taken. Mor suspense, more mystery. And a little romance. Happy reading!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Winx Club.**

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Helia knocked on the door of the Headmaster's study, wondering why his grandfather had summoned him.

"Come in."

"Yes, Grandfather? You wanted to see me?"

Saladin looked at Helia with intelligent eyes. "Ah, Helia!" He held up a piece of paper. "I have a letter here from your father. He wants you to go home and take care of some trouble up north."

Helia felt his face go hard.

"Grandfather, I think I mentioned I would undertake no more missions for the army."

Saladin turned away and shuffled heavily to the window. "This is not for the army; it's for the Intelligence Department. After all, you _are_ trained in Espionage."

"He wants me to spy on my own country?"

"Perhaps you are too hard on your father, Helia. He only wishes for good to happen to you."

"And is that why he tried to stop me from transferring to Art School? Let's face it, Grandfather, if you hadn't intervened, I'd never been allowed to go there!"

"It isn't a question of _allowing_ you, my dear boy! We all saw what happened to you after the war, and we all had our methods of coping with it. You are too important to ignore, Helia, even when you sulk."

"I wasn't sulking!"

"My mistake. Even when you are _in depression_, you are too important to your homeland. And lately, it seems to me as if you've forgotten your duties. You have responsibilities towards a lot of people. Your mother cried nights for you, your brother was bewildered beyond reason and your father tried to bring you back on the right track. I, for my part, gave to time to recover. But it has been too long now. You have to get back to work!"

"I don't _have to _do anything, Grandfather!"

"Don't let power go to your head, my boy."

Helia leaned on the back of a chair and sighed. "I'm sorry, Grandfather. I was unnecessarily rude to you. But please, I don't want to undertake any missions outside Redfountain anymore."

Saladin cleared his throat. "Might a certain nature fairy have to do something with that?"

"What!" Helia's head snapped up.

Saladin looked him straight in the eyes. "I'm sure Flora's parents will be more than happy to see you two to–"

"No, Grandfather. Flora is insecure as it is, and if she knows who I am…well, she might just run away or something. Please, don't let her know anything."

Saladin considered that for a long time. "Alright," he finally said. "I'll make sure she doesn't know until you decide to tell her yourself. But do consider this mission, won't you?"

Helia took the letter. "I'll go through it," he promised.

As he walked out of the study, that relentless nightmare came rushing back into his mind. He had been having the same dream for months now. The only thing that calmed him was Flora's beautiful face. _But no, I can't see her. I have to distance myself from her._

He decided to go for a quiet meditation session in the park. But Destiny didn't seem to want to leave him alone. About an hour into his inner consciousness, he heard the sweetest, most melodious voice currently in his life.

"Helia!"

His name had been made so she could say it, he was sure.

He looked at her, noting the surprise on her face. In this light, her eyes looked more emerald than jade. They were as much, if not more, beautiful.

And then, his clumsy Flora dropped all her books. As he helped her pick them up, he found a letter addressed to the dormitory he shared with his squad in Redfountain. But why would she write letters to one of the specialists? If she wanted to talk, she could ask her friends for their numbers."

Flora's face had gone very pale. "W-wait," she stammered.

"What is it, Flora? Is something wrong?" Fretting over her seemed to come naturally.

"No, there's nothing wrong."

She stressed on the 'nothing'. That word was so fragile, so fickle. He felt the need to tell her that. "Nothing. Despite its definition, fewer words have more meaning."

"That letter! T-that letter is for –"

It wasn't his business anyway. "It's yours. Here."

"Uh…I'll see you later."

"Uh-huh." Helia had never been more desperate to get out of anywhere. He took a bus back to Redfountain.

Riven was lounging on the floor. "Hey, pretty boy," he drawled.

"Hello, Riven." He threw himself down on his bed. "Hey, does anyone write letters to you guys from Magix?"

Riven laughed. "We don't live in the Dark Ages, y'know. If someone wants to communicate, they can just call. The only letters people get around here are intergalactic transmissions and love letters."

"Right." _Love letters?_

"Man, no offense, but you're weird."

"I know, Riven, I know."

Riven went back to his video game, probably having forgotten the conversation already. That was the good thing about asking him personal questions. He forgot about them soon. Very soon. Right now, Helia too had other things on his mind. He opened his father's letter and read through it. The mission consisted of infiltrating a minor military camp and investigating the possible existence of illegal technology. Dangerous, as usual, but simple enough. Helia had done this kind of work for a long time. A lot of his bravery depended upon the fact that no one could prosecute him even if he was exposed, owing to his status and position.

But he would have to leave Flora.

_I need an excuse to get away from her anyway._

Could he survive without her?

_Of course, I can survive without her! Haven't I done that for the last seventeen years?_

Temptation comes only after seeing the prize.

_I should take this mission._

Except…he had vowed not to. But then, by successful accomplishment of this one, he was indirectly also protecting Linphea, the place where this technology was banned and could cause the most damage.

_Flora…I have to do this for her. A farfetched excuse maybe, but she lives there nevertheless. What do I do?_

A few days later, a magically bloomed white rose bush in his balcony had made the decision for him.

_For you, Flora. I will take this mission._

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**A/N: Reviews welcome.**


	6. Crime

**A/N: Hello! I'm so thankful to all the people who took pains to review this story. ****Some of you have given me such great compliments!** They encourage me to write more. 

**Anyway, to all the anonymous reviewers who had doubts concerning the plot - there's nothing bad or wrong about Flora coming from Linphea; it just puts Helia in a socially awkward position. As to why it is so, you'll have to read on.  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Winx Club.**

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The doors of the pod hissed open as Helia stepped through. He stared at the stranger in the mirror, marvelling at his transformation. This new Helia no longer had aqua eyes or long raven hair, but a buzz cut and dull blue eyes. _Nothing that stands out._

He looked back at the pod, which looked like an innocent shower closet. _Technology like this in the wrong hands is dangerous, which is why common use of it is unlawful. Today, it has temporarily changed my appearance. Tomorrow, it could be used to impersonate the king. It is perfectly made: so much so that even I would not recognise the simulated form of my own father. I have to get it out of there. _ And yet, the Transformation Pod was too large to just carry away. Helia's job was to find out how it had been taken into a secret facility far up north of his father's kingdom, and if possible, destroy it. It was not a task to his liking, but he had deeply considered his grandfather's words before taking it. He did owe something to his family and his motherland.

He pocketed the fake ID he had made the previous night, checked the placement of his laser string glove – hidden as a tattoo on the back of his hand – and refuelled the thrusters in his shoes. To complete his disguise, he adopted a slightly duck-footed posture and practiced his voice into a lazy drawl. _I feel like Riven._

But thoughts of Riven brought back thoughts of _her._ Pushing Magix out of his mind, he walked to his private hangar and strapped himself into the pilot's seat of his jet. Flying was something Helia loved ever since he first tried it. It gave him a filling satisfaction, made him feel like a free bird – like an eagle, the king of the skies. He powered the jet and lifted off.

After a wistful, aerial view of his country, Helia landed in the secluded, snow-covered terrain of the Sasanqua Mountains. It was hard to think that an illegal lab would exist in this beautiful, flowery region, but Helia had learned that people could do anything to suit their purposes. He programmed the jet to return at a suitable time and watched it fly back, the familiar rush of a new mission rapidly regaining its position in his veins.

Slouching into his new gait, Helia made his way to the wrought-iron gates of the secret facility. A formidable sign gaped back at him.

'ENTRY RESTRICTED EXCEPT FOR AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL'

He flashed his ID at the guards and walked in. They didn't look twice at him. As soon as he was out of their line of sight, Helia vanished behind some trees. He pressed a button on his watch, letting his contacts back home know he had successfully breached the outer boundaries. _Now to sneak into the lab itself._

The lab was made to look like a rocky hill, though in reality a solid steel structure. _Have they employed the Transformation Pod's mechanisms to objects other than living beings? _thought Helia. _If nothing else, that is surely not lawful. _There were armed guards posted around all its entrances. Helia knew that using his ID would lead him straight into a lobby or discussion room full of people, where he most certainly did not want to be.

Keeping to the woods, Helia edged around to the back. He threw a small rock in the opposite direction. Minutes later, a loud splash echoed across the area. The two guards in front of him rushed to check what was happening, giving Helia a clear shot at the window above their posts. Swinging his laser strings, he landed lightly on the sill and dropped stealthily inside. _See, Sky? Explosions are not always necessary._

The chamber was a storage room. Specimens of various kinds hung in cryotanks: plants, animals and even a human corpse. All of them were modified somehow by way of appearance. The human looked as if he had grown a few extra limbs. Helia looked away, slightly revolted. Creeping past the exhibits, he peered through the keyhole. The corridor outside was deserted. Opening the door, he stepped into the hallway. According to his sources, the actual experiments were conducted on the second floor, one level above him.

Footsteps echoed to his right. Helia hastily dived behind the door, watching through the keyhole. Two men came into focus, holding a stretcher between them. A horribly mangled hand hung over its edge. They stopped at the Storage Chamber. One of them twisted the doorknob, and they came in.

Helia was long gone, already tiptoeing up the stairs to the second level. He peered around the edge of the stairway. There were people in coats: scribbling on clipboards, shaking test-tubes and performing surgeries. They had duplicated the Pod – its replicas were now hissing open to reveal combinations of various species of plants, animals and other beings. Helia saw a woman with the head of a Venus Flytrap, a half lion-half zebra and what looked like about twenty clones of the same redheaded person.

_It seems the Pod is just one element in a much sinister plot, _though Helia. He crept back the way he had come, and used another window to get out of the lab. Once safely out of the main gates, he summoned his jet.

He returned to the quarters temporarily assigned to him – his planet's Embassy on Linphea.

Everyone in the lobby stood up as he entered. Whispers followed his self-protective walk – hands in pockets, head down, shoulders stooped. They had all heard the rumours surrounding his rebellious behaviour after the war. _So much for being a spy, _he though bitterly. _No quiet, secretive entrances for the Crown Prince. My curse is being my father's son._

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Helia had thought long and hard, mulling over the situation in the lab in his mind. Scattered papers littered the floor in his royally spacious room. Helia had ignored the carved ebony desk completely. He often found that unconventionality gave him ideas. He had chosen to lie on his stomach on the rich, grassy carpet and work between poems and drawings. As much as he tried to resist it, being on Linphea made him sketch _her_ over and over. Though it distracted him from his task, the eloquent descriptions of her emerald eyes in poetic lines gave his brain a break from thinking of the gruesome sights he had witnessed, enabling him to resume work refreshed.

Even though he was practically living in a treehouse with one of the most beautiful gardens in Linphea, it had been three days since the last time Helia had stepped out of his room. He didn't want to be pointed at, whispered at, _looked at_. People's judging eyes made him want to run away to happier pastures. _Why is it so necessary to be conventional_? he wondered. _Why do you have to 'fit in'? Why is a misfit labelled a freak?_

Pulling his thoughts away from Society's inscrutable ways, he looked back at the diagrams and maps he was making. The last time he had gone out of the Embassy, Helia had spied excessively and continuously on the goings-on in the experiment halls, employing his training in Redfountain to the best of his ability. The scientists were developing espionage technology far more advanced than any in existence. And as far as he knew the laws of the realm, it was not permissible to use unauthorised technology in the vicinity of natural environments such as Linphea or its neighbour, Clematis. Even his own gadgets had undergone careful scrutiny in both his own home and Linphea before he was allowed to operate them.

His next course of action had to be calling in Linphea's army to raid the lab and seize the equipment. The only problem was that the lab was secured against Elemental forces, and most of Linphea or Clematis's warriors used nature-based magic to fight. To summon soldiers from his own country would certainly attract suspicion, since a peace treaty had been signed between all the realm's kingdoms after the war. Well, most of them adhered to it, anyway.

And yet, something troubled Helia. This had to be an inside job. Someone within the realm was using the transportation portals that existed between the planet and its moons to bring in this equipment. No doubt all that would be weeded out by interrogators after the scientists were captured. But how? He didn't want any bloodshed to happen on the pure natural beauty of Sasanqua.

Helia had a plan, but it involved speaking to the commander of Linphea's armies: the King of Linphea - who was also Flora's father.

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**A/N: To be continued. And also, Flora is not going to make an appearance at her father's court when Helia is present there, since if you remember, she is busy rescuing the rest of the Codex pieces back in Magix. **

**Tell me what you think!**


	7. Privacy

**A/N: It's been a long wait, but it's given me inspiration to create a unique personality for Flora's dad. Sometimes, a few genes remain un-inherited.  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Winx Club.**

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Privacy. A luxury that the Crown Prince of one of the richest planets in the cosmos didn't have. Everything he did _must _be splashed all over the news, _must _be whispered in corners, _must _be gossiped about. Was he dating anyone? Or had he privately married one of those foreign girls from that school he went to? And did he still attend that school, or had he been thrown out? What was he going to do painting pictures if he had a kingdom to govern and overlordship of half a dozen satellites?

One of the reasons why Helia liked the night was the darkness and the secrecy it offered. His skills allowed him to slip past people like a shadow, don the cloak of Mother Nature and have himself to himself. When he was a child, he would often outwit the guards outside the corridor to his chambers to run out into the forest and sit beneath a tree, listening to the voice of nature, letting it envelope him and take away the day's troubles. As an adolescent, Helia would practise his archery at the dead of the night on the dark creatures that had begun to appear in his father's kingdom. In the aftermath of that war with the very same dark creatures and the men that they had controlled, he would walk the woods alone, the night a reflection on the darkness into which his mind had fallen.

This night, Helia had a less abstract reason to take the cover of darkness. He meant to keep his visit to the King of Linphea a secret to avoid it reaching Flora's ears. He accosted King Faunus during his daily constitutional in Queen Syrinx's painstakingly-tended garden, a little past dinnertime. It was a mark of Linphea's pacifist policy that the king did not reach for his sword when Helia dropped in front of him from a tree.

"Good evening, Your Majesty," said Helia, bowing.

"Young man, you bear an uncanny resemblance to someone I met only a few days ago, but I shall still ask you to identify yourself."

Helia smiled. King Faunus's intelligence and its resulting eccentricity was well-known. "Prince Helia, sire. I do bear an uncanny resemblance to my father, King Hyperion. I am aware you met a few days ago. What he spoke of with you is the reason for my visit."

"Have you run out of letters and scribes? We shall be happy to supply a few until you get replacements."

"I was in Linphea and decided to come here myself, since it was a matter of some urgency."

"Aye, I can see that. You did fall out of the skies. Has it to do with your activities in the north?"

"It does, Your Majesty."

"Well, come where we may speak more freely then."

To Helia's great surprise, he ducked into a canopy of large ferns and disappeared beneath the foliage. Following, Helia found him sitting cross legged in the perfectly round space. Helia took up a position in front of him.

"I come here to meditate sometimes," said King Faunus conversationally. "I found it when the wife was carrying the first of my girls. She used to get rather - cranky - I believe is the word. Funnily enough, the daughter turned out to be the quietest baby I'd ever seen. Now, young man, let us turn to the matter at hand so we can both get back to our beds."

Helia told him in length about the happenings at the secret facility in Sasanqua. "I would suggest military intervention, but the laboratory is fortified against magical attacks. Besides, I don't want to shed any more of our warriors' blood. I would like to borrow your Stealth Corps for a while, if you'd permit it."

King Faunus was staring at him with a calculating expression. Helia was reminded of the way Flora had looked at his sketch at Redfountain, with the same tilt of the head, the same glint in the eyes she had inherited from her father. Finally, King Faunus sighed. "I don't see a way around it. You can have the Corps. Am I right in supposing you plan to utilise them to search for the transportation pads in the facility and have them destroyed?"

"Precisely, sire. The transportation portals only function if _both_ ends are open and functional. By eliminating those on one end, we stop the transport and hopefully, the goings-on at the lab. We shall also try to take down the shields surrounding the hill. After that, you and Father may deal with the wrongdoers as you wish. The Queen of Clematis will have something to say about this as well, I believe."

"Indeed, she will. The Corps will be deployed tomorrow night, stealthily, of course. I like using the Stealth Corps, you know. Those pesky nobles don't have to know they have been sent out."

"I couldn't agree more," smiled Helia. "I shall meet the Corps tomorrow night on the outcrop of cliffs near the River Amphi. Is that fine?"

"It is, for me. I'm not the one climbing around those dangerous rocks. You be careful, young man, or some beautiful princess in some distant land will blame me for letting her future husband die."

_Why some distant land? _thought Helia, amused. _The beautiful princess I love lives only a few realms away from my own._

He took leave of the king (who advised him to find a secret place to escape to while the beautiful princess in question bore his children), and flew all the way back to the Embassy.

Back in his room, he lay on his bed and closed his eyes. King Faunus was certainly impressionable, and he wasn't surprised that Flora had developed insecurity around her father, the turns of whose thoughts resembled a whirlwind. After meeting him, Helia thought he wouldn't so much mind the social reactions of his dating Flora. _King Faunus certainly wouldn't care._ _I'll talk to her as soon as I see her again. Maybe ask her for a little walk._

And for the first time in years, Helia fell asleep smiling.

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**A/N: I do love eccentrics, don't you? Big stuff coming up ASAP! All reviews welcome.  
**


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